According to The Clarion Ledger, New Orleans-based actor Jeremy Sande (Deepwater Horizon) is pounding the pavement in the hopes that Walt Disney Studios will consider him for the role of a lifetime in the next Die Hard franchise.
Says the actor, “About a two years ago when I heard the chatter of a new Die Hard, I felt this was my opportunity.’ When it (Die Hard) came out it blew away the action genre. John McClane was just a normal guy who wound up in a situation where he had to perform outstanding acts to survive which is what the human genome is designed to do.”
“So I set out to produce a short film, basically as my informal audition tape. With the help of some incredibly talented filmmaking friends, we made “Roy” within a week.” Anyone that is a Die Hard fan will understand the Roy reference from the original 1988 film, directed by John McTiernan.
Watch Sande’s film Roy below and ask yourself: Does he have what it takes to step in the shoes of John McClane?
To read about the the latest updates regarding the next Die Hard film, click here.
On December 10th, 2019, RLJ Entertainment (formerly Image Entertainment) will release the Blu-ray for The Wrath, a 2018 Korean horror film from director Yoo Young-Seon (The Wicked).
In the household of Lee Gyeong-jin, a high-ranking official of Joseon Kingdom, three sons die from an unidentified horror. A woman pregnant with a child of the third son soon learns of the evil spirit that haunts the house.
The Wrath stars Seo Young-Hee (The Chaser), Son Na-Eun (Return of the Mafia), Lee Tae-Ri (Waikiki Brothers) and Park Min-Ji (Punch Strike).
On October 15th, 2019, Fox Home Entertainment will release the Blu-ray & DVD for Stuber, an action comedy directed by Michael Dowse (Goon).
When a mild-mannered Uber driver named Stu (Kumail Nanjian, The Big Sick) picks up a passenger (Dave Bautista, Enter the Warrior’s Gate) who turns out to be a cop hot on the trail of a brutal killer, he’s thrust into a harrowing ordeal where he desperately tries to hold onto his wits, his life and his five-star rating.
Stuber also features martial arts star Iko Uwais (Triple Threat, The Raid 2), Natalie Morales, Betty Gilpin, Jimmy Tatro, Mira Sorvino and Karen Gillan.
On September 20th, 2019, Kwon Oh-Kwang’s Tazza: One Eyed Jack is getting a limited theatrical release from Well Go USA. The film – a follow up to 2014’s Tazza: The Hidden Card and 2006’s Tazza: The High Rollers – stars Park Jung-Min (Office) and Ryoo Seung-Bum (Doomsday Book).
A young poker player at the top of his game loses everything after he plays for one big jackpot. To save himself from a loan shark settling his debts, he joins a poker team lead by the legendary poker player One-Eyed Jack. While successfully working their plan to win a huge jackpot, a single mistake puts the entire team in a dangerous life or death situation.
Tazza: One Eyed Jack also stars Choi Yu-Hwa, Woo Hyeon, Lee Kwang-Soo, Lim Ji-Yeon and Kwon Hae-Hyo.
In the tradition of Choi Dong-hun’s Assassination (2015) and Kim Ji-woon’s The Age of Shadows (2016) comes Saturday Fiction, a spy thriller from director Lou Ye (Suzhou River) and writer Yingli Ma (Summer Palace)
According to AFS, Saturday Fiction revolves around a star theatre actress working as a spy for the Allies in 1941 Shanghai.
Before Shinichiro Ueda’s One Cut of the Dead, there was Naoyoshi Kawamatsu’s Undertaker. And on October 29th, 2019, Synapse Films will be releasing the Blu-ray & DVD for this 2012 Japanese zombie film.
In Undertaker, a deadly virus outbreak is turning the people of Japan into flesh-eating zombies. The government intervenes, trying to separate the survivors from the infected. Ryouichi, a young boy who has his family and friends destroyed by the undead infestation, becomes an assistant to an Undertaker… a person hired by families to kill loved ones who’ve been turned. Armed with a modified shovel and a bag, Ryouichi roams the ruins of Japan killing zombies and collecting body parts to prove to grieving families that their infected loved ones are now at peace.
Director Naoyoshi Kawamatsu presents a moving story set in a horrific dystopian future with his independent masterpiece, Undertaker. The film stars Yoshito Kobashigawa, Tomoka Asano, Yuina Kumakura, Tetsuyaa Masumitsu and Natsuki Minami.
Special Features:
Farewell to the Precious: The Making of Undertaker
“The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil” Theatrical Poster
Director: Lee Won-Tae Cast: Ma Dong-Seok, Kim Moo-Yul, Kim Sung-Kyu, Kim Yoon-Sung, Oh Hee-Joon, Choi Min-Chul, Ahn Sung-Bong, Yoo Seung-Mok, Heo Dong-Won Running Time: 110 min.
By Z Ravas
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, chances are writer/director Park Hoon-jung is somewhere in Korea blushing a bright shade of crimson right about now. In fact, the biggest surprise about this year’s The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil is that the Witch: Part 1. The Subversion filmmaker had nothing to do with it: the action/thriller’s high concept could be boiled down to pitting the deranged serial killer from I Saw the Devil against the swaggering gangsters of New World. Instead, the movie arrives from relative newcomer Lee Won-tae.
As the film opens, a knife-wielding murderer (played by The Outlaws’ Kim Sung-kyu) continues to elude Kim Mu-yeol’s (War of the Arrows) cop on the edge. As it turns out, Sung-kyu is crazy as a fox – or at least crazy enough to randomly stab the imposing Ma Dong-seok (Unstoppable), here playing a gangster who barely survives the attack with his life. Seeing as how Ma Dong-seok is the only victim to walk away from a run-in with the killer, Kim Mu-yeol realizes his best hope of catching the serial murderer is to form an uneasy alliance with Ma Dong-seok and his criminal cohorts.
It’s the kind of elevator pitch that Hollywood execs tend to greenlight in a flash, such that you have to wonder why this simple but clever hook –– good guy teams up with bad guy against even worse guy –– has never been done before, at least not in this particular configuration. Writer/director Lee Won-tae seems to know he has a hit on his hands; despite the fact that this is only his second film, after 2017’s Man of Will, he directs the material with a relaxed confidence.
In fact, given the film’s title and moody poster art, I went into The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil expecting a somber and graphically violent thriller; but the tone here is breezy. For the most part, the movie plays as a buddy action/comedy, and the graphic nature of Kim Sung-kyu’s crimes are largely implied rather than shown. I have to admit, the movie’s almost jovial attitude threw me for a loop, considering I thought I was wading into grim territory akin to a Na Hong-jin (The Yellow Sea) picture. Director Lee Won-Tae’s influences are unmistakable –– at times, his movie can feel like a greatest hits album of the last two decades of Korean cinema, from The Chaser to Confession of Murder –– but his motivation here is to deliver pure mainstream entertainment, not to scar the viewer’s mind.
Fortunately, Lee Won-Tae’s mission to entertain is made easier by his charismatic performers and at least two high-tempo action setpieces, including a brawl in a poker machine warehouse and a car chase. Kim Mu-yeol is an actor who’s transitioned from supporting roles to a leading man in recent years, and he’s suitably brash as a dogged cop butting up against both corrupt superiors and his city’s criminal element. Meanwhile, Ma Dong-seok might just be the most recognizable face in Korean cinema right now, after his star-making turn in Train to Busan and a future slate that includes Marvel’s The Eternals. The duo make for an ideal odd couple, and half the fun of the movie is watching as Kim Mu-yeol and his police squad form a begrudging kind of respect for Ma Dong-seok’s scrappy gangster, and vice versa. The other half of the film’s fun might be anticipating what Ma Dong-seok is going to do once he gets his considerably-sized mitts on Kim Sung-kyu’s killer. In that regard, the movie does not disappoint.
The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil is not out to reinvent the wheel; it’s not a film aiming to win accolades or probe the darkest places of man’s subconscious a la The Wailing. This is slick but effective commercial filmmaking, to the point that you’ll start casting the Hollywood remake in your head long before the credits roll. Considering how many memorable killers South Korean cinema has delivered to the screen, it’s disappointing that Kim Sung-kyu never truly lives up to his billing as ‘the devil’; and part of me can’t help but feel like the movie just goes down too easy. Still, you’ll want to overlook such quibbles every time Ma Dong-seok swaggers down a hallway in one of his tailored suits or tosses a rival hood into an eletronic poker machine. The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil is the equivalent of a cinematic cover band, paying tribute to all the Korean action/thrillers you know and love. Sure, it’s not exactly original, but the onstage jam session never hits a bum note.
Legend of the Demon Cat | Blu-ray & DVD (Well Go USA)
RELEASE DATE: October 29, 2019
On October 29th, 2019, Well Go USA is releasing the Blu-ray for Legend of the Demon Cat (read our review) from acclaimed director Chen Kaige (Farewell My Concubine, Monk Comes Down the Mountain).
This big budget Japanese-Chinese co-production stars Huang Xuan (The Great Wall), Shota Sometani (Tokyo Tribe), Kitty Zhang (CJ7), Qin Hao (Rock Hero), Hiroshi Abe (Chocolate) and Keiko Matsuzaka (The Happiness of the Katakuris).
Legend of the Demon Cat sees a Chinese poet and a Japanese monk join forces to investigate the influence of a demonic cat, which has possessed a general’s wife, wreaked havoc on the royal court and killed legendary courtesan Yang Guifei. The film, originally presented under the title Kukai, is adapted from a bestselling four-volume novel about love, death and revenge by Yumemakura Baku (via Variety).
On October 15th, MVD Rewind Collection will release the Blu-ray for 1992’s My Samurai, a martial arts actioner directed by Fred H. Dresch (No Justice) and starring Taekwondo sensation Julian Lee (Assassins’ Code), Terry O’Quinn (The Stepfather) and Mako (The Perfect Weapon).
In My Samurai, a a boy, Peter McCrea (John Kallo), witnesses a gangland murder. He turns to his martial arts teacher, Young Park (Lee), to help defend him from the gangsters. On the run from both the gang and the police, Peter learns self-defense and the courage to face his fears.
From MVD Rewind: “Producer Richard Schenkman had his work cut out for him on this one. He tracked down a few peeps from the film and got some great insight. We are learning that some of these smaller films require more work than the bigger ones! None the less, we have some great pieces here that I think you are gonna love…”
Special Features:
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p, 1.78:1) presentation of the main feature
English 2.0 Stereo Sound (LPCM)
Optional English Subtitles
New! Interview with stars Julian Lee & Mark Steven Grove (HD, 45:18)
New! “Watching My Scenes” with actor Jim Turner (HD, 23:58)
New! A Conversation with Christophe Clark (HD, 28:40)
I’m not sure if there’s a single person out there that would willingly raise their hand to being a fan of the Japanese zombie micro-budget genre. The standard traits of such productions usually consist of uninspired stories, enough budget to try and make 1 blood bag last the whole movie, laughable zombie make-up, cheap titillation, and CGI so bad it looks like it was created before computers existed. These movies exist to fill a gap in the market I’m not sure is even big enough to warrant worrying about, but nevertheless, if you’ve drained Netflix dry of zombie outings, or just want to enjoy watching scantily clad ladies hacking away at the undead, they’re out there. If you don’t believe me, just look up Attack Girls’ Swimteam vs. The Undead.
With that being said, the 2017 micro-budget production One Cut of the Dead has quickly gained cult status, almost entirely thanks to the positive word of mouth it’s achieved on the festival circuit. Made for just $25,000 and shot in 8 days, it’s already raked in over $25,000,000 globally, equating to a 1000% return on investment. Not bad for a movie which is in fact the bi-product of an ENBU Seminar, a school in Toyko that conducts workshops on acting and directing. It’s fair to say that those who enrolled for this particular workshop could have no idea they’d become such an integral part of the productions runaway success.
One Cut of the Dead’s unconventional journey to the screen has also brought with it some controversy on its native soil. Established studios were quick to frown upon the fact that, from a certain perspective, it could be argued its cast actually paid to feature in the movie. While this is technically true, the seminar did come with an enrolment fee, it’s since been confirmed that everyone that was cast has received a cut (no pun intended) of the productions success. So how did a movie with an unknown cast, using a genre that’s been milked for all its worth, on a budget that wouldn’t cover a week’s catering in Hollywood, become so popular?
It was a question I was keen to find the answer to, and spurred on by a trusted friend who’d already seen it, I found myself sitting down to give One Cut of the Dead a watch. In all honesty, within the first 30 minutes I came close to turning it off twice. Sure, the story contained a spark of originality. A film crew visit an abandoned water treatment facility, where they intend to shoot a zombie flick. The director, played by Takayuki Hamatsu, has secured himself the gig by assuring the producers of his reputation for being “fast, cheap, but average.” However his cast are giving him issues, from his female lead (Yuzuki Akayama) to the main zombie (Kazuaki Nagaya), the inability to get a successful take leads to plenty of high pitched yelling as only the Japanese can.
However the facility hides a dark secret, as it’s revealed that during World War II it was originally used by the Japanese army to conduct “human reanimation experiments”. It gradually becomes clear that the director knows more about this dubious history than he’s letting on, and with the sudden appearance of real zombies crashing the set, the resulting panic from the cast is met with glee from Hamatsu, who deliriously yells “Don’t stop shooting!” The announcement is also the direct translation of the Japanese title, and the cameraman duly obliges, resulting in an unbroken 37 minute one-take shot that opens the movie.
The single shot took a total of 2 days to complete over 6 takes (apparently the cast nailed it on the 2nd take, but technical difficulties with the camera resulted in the footage being unusable), and it’s an admirable effort. Of course I’m sure fellow Japanese director Koji Shiraishi would hunt me down if I neglected to mention that his 2014 production, A Record of Sweet Murder, consisted of an 80 minute one-take shot, so he’s still the guy to beat! Admirable as it may be though, One Cut of the Dead can’t escape the trappings of what it is – a micro-budget Japanese zombie movie. Relentlessly irritating screaming, shoddy acting (at one point a character simply walks out of shot for no reason), clunky pacing, and dialogue that sometimes sounds as if it’s being made up on the spot. The only real factor that kept me watching was a promise I made to my friend, who’d insisted that I had to “stick with it.”
Stick with it I did, making me thankful that I (usually) keep the promises I make. After the epic single take wraps up, One Cut of the Dead hoodwinks the audience in a way which can only be described as pure genius. To go into any level of detail as to what the remaining hour consists of would only involve spoilers, and dampen the experience for any potential viewers who’ve yet to check it out, so I’ll avoid mentioning any specifics. Needless to say though, the popularity that this particular zombie flick has garnered is well earned, and that’s in no small thanks to director and writer Shinichiro Ueda’s killer concept.
Ueda debuted in 2011 with the entertainingly titled Rice and Boobs, a debate movie which posed the (decidedly male-centric) question of, if one of the two had to disappear from the world forever, which would you choose? It’s a question I’m sure Chow Yun Fat’s character from A Better Tomorrow 2 would be happy to weigh in on. Since then he’s stuck with directing shorts, the most recent of which was Take 8, which revolves around an actor that’s due to play the father at the shoot of a wedding not turning up, and the drama that follows. While thematically very different, the framework of using a film shoot as the basis for telling a story is one that’s carried over to One Cut of the Dead, and is used much more dynamically with the benefit of a feature length runtime.
Perhaps most interestingly, as much as I started watching One Cut of the Dead expecting to draw comparisons to the likes of I Am a Hero and Train to Busan, the movie that I was left most reminded of once the credits rolled was Hong Sang-soo’s Tales of Cinema from 2005. While both fall into very different genres, what they share in common is a structure that plays with the traditional narrative to go in unexpected directions. For Hong Sang-soo, he used a similar technique as a pivot to shift into increasingly challenging territory, however for Ueda, his blindside is used to shove his unassuming cast onto a path which proves to be both unexpectedly hilarious, while also delivering a surprisingly feel-good factor.
It’s safe to say that the One Cut of the Dead train has plenty of mileage left it in at the time of writing. The rights may have been bought for a US remake, however it’s difficult to imagine how to transpose such a unique offering without losing the originals magic. But then again, I’m the guy that upon hearing Ringu was going to receive an American remake back in the early 00’s, confidently declared that it would never work. What I can say with confidence though, is that a Hollywood set TV spin-off has already hit Japanese TV screens, titled One Cut of the Dead Spin-Off: In Hollywood and features many returning cast members. While Ueda stuck to screenwriting duties, he handed the directorial reigns for the spin-off over to One Cut of the Dead’s 2nd unit director, Yuya Nakaizumi. At the time of writing it’s yet to receive any English subtitles, however here’s hoping we’ll see them sometime soon.
While both the zombie genre and Japanese cinema overall have seen better days, it’s an adrenaline rush to find movies like One Cut of the Dead out there that not only want to please audiences, but are also daring enough to toy with them. Those expecting a bloodbath splatter fest will likely find themselves disappointed with what Ueda’s production really has to offer, however for anyone that classes themselves as a fan of cinema, there’s plenty to enjoy. Ueda already has his next gig lined up with a production called Aesop’s Game, which he wrote and co-directed with his One Cut of the Dead collaborators Yuya Nakaizumi and Naoya Asanuma, so here’s hoping that same level of originality is maintained moving forward. If I can give one piece of advice to anyone hesitant to check out this diamond in the rough, then it would be “Don’t stop watching!”
Message from Space: Galactic Wars | Blu-ray (Eastern Star)
RELEASE DATE: October 29, 2019
On October 29, 2019, Eastern Star/Discotek Media will release the Blu-ray set for 1978’s Message from Space Galactic Wars, a 27-episode space opera conceived by Shotaro Ishinomori (Kamen Rider).
Centuries after the people of Earth master interstellar travel, humanity is thriving across the galaxy. The colonists of the 15th Solar System live in harmony with the natives, fostering lives of peace and simple beauty. But this all changes when the Gavanas Empire arrives, as the merciless despot Roxair XIII quickly conquers the 15th Solar System and enslaves all life there to his cause!
This Live-action series stars Hiroyuki Sanada (Ringu, In the Line of Duty), Akira Oda (Bullet Train), Ryo Nishida (Doberman Cop), Iwao Tabuchi (Sister Street Fighter: Fifth Level Fist) and Yoko Akitani (Tokimeki).
On September 10th, 2019, Well Go USA is releasing the Blu-ray & DVD for The Lingering, a Chinese horror film from first-time directing-duo, Ho Pong Mak and Derrick Tao, with a script from Edmond Wong (Master Z: Ip Man Legacy) and Dong Zheng.
Dawa and his mother spend a terrifying night alone in the basement after being tormented by a strange and dangerous presence. Years after his mom’s death, Dawa is forced to return, again facing the presence that once tortured him as a child.
The Lingering stars Athena Chu (Taxi Hunter), Louis Cheung (Ip Man 3), Bob Cheung (House of Spirits) and Fung Lee (Big Brother).
Don’t miss the New Character Trailer for Son Yong-Ho’s Bad Guys: The Movie, which is based off a 2014 and 2017 television drama from South Korea’s Orion Cinema Network.
Ma Dong-Seok, aka Don Lee (Unstoppable, Champion), leads a cast that includes Kim Sang-Joong (The Chaser), Kim A-Joong (The King), Chang Ki-Yong (Kill It) and Gang Ye-Won (Quick).
In Bad Guys: The Movie, a prisoner transport vehicle overturns and the dangerous prisoners escape. To catch the escaped prisoners, the police decide to once again form a special crime investigation team consisting of prisoners to catch the criminals.
CJ Entertainment is releasing Bad Guys: The Movie on September 11th in select U.S. Theaters (coinciding with its domestic release date). For now, check out the film’s latest Trailer below:
Woman Chasing the Butterfly of Death | Blu-ray (Mondo Macabro)
RELEASE DATE: October 8, 2019
On October 8th, 2019, Mondo Macabro, the U.S.-based company responsible for last year’s release of the Korean horror classic Suddenly in the Dark (read our review), is releasing the Blu-ray for Woman Chasing a Killer Butterfly (aka The Girl with the Butterfly Tattoo or The Killer Butterfly), a 1978 film directed by Kim Ki-young.
Check out Mondo Macabro’s announcement below:
Over the years we’ve released some pretty strange movies here at Mondo Macabro. But this might very well be the strangest yet. Directed by Kim Ki-young, director of the original version of The Housemaid, often called “the best Korean film of all time”, Butterfly is a horror-tinged psychotropic melodrama freak-out about nothing less than death itself and the will to keep living.
After a young man survives being poisoned by a girl at a picnic he falls into a deep, suicidal depression. But standing in the way of his desire to kill himself is a Nietzschean bookseller who refuses to die even though he’s killed several times, an ancient mummy who is revived in the form of a beautiful woman who happens to be a cannibal, and an insane anthropologist who wants to keep his daughter alive by getting her laid. And also, of course, butterflies.
Killer Butterfly is the most eccentric work in the filmography of the very eccentric Kim Ki-young, made at time of crisis in the Korean film industry when he was running out of hit movies but not bizarre ideas.
Mondo Macabro is incredibly excited to bring this amazing film to the U.S. for the first time ever in a world-premiere Blu-ray release sporting a new 2K restoration from the original negative and loaded with tons of exclusive extras:
Brand New 2K Restoration from the original negative
New! audio commentary by Kenneth Brorsson and Paul Quinn of the What’s Korean Cinema podcast
New! Interview with actress Lee Hwa-si
New! Interview with producer Jung Jin-woo
New! Interview with cinematographer Koo Joong-mo
New! Interview with Korean cinema expert Darcy Paquet on the career of Kim Ki-young
Korean language track with newly translated optional English subs
Director: Kim Joo-Hwan Cast: Park Seo-Joon, Ahn Sung-Ki, Woo Do-Hwan, Park Ji-Hyun, Choi Woo-Sik, Jung Ji-Hoon, Lee Seung-Hee, Sim Hee-Seop, Kim Si-Eun, Kim Seon-Min, Kim Bum-Soo Running Time: 129 min.
By Paul Bramhall
It’s been over 20 years since legendary Korean actor Ahn Sung-ki played a priest battling with possession hungry demons, in 1998’s Soul Guardians. Now a poorly aged showcase for Korea’s burgeoning CGI effects, in 2019 director Kim Joo-hwan clearly thought it’s time to update the concept. So it is The Divine Fury finds Sung-ki once again dusting off his old dog collar to take on, you guessed it, possession hungry demons. Times have changed a lot in 20 years though, and whereas Soul Guardians riffed heavily on Hollywood flicks like The Craft for its aesthetics, thankfully the Korean film industry has long since founds its own voice.
Having a voice isn’t a whole lot of use though, if what you have to say doesn’t make any sense. Or you’ve been possessed, for that matter. Which brings us to the hook The Divine Fury, which essentially rests on that of an MMA fighter battling against satanic forces. At least nobody can accuse it of not being original. Said fighter is played by Park Seo-joon, who worked with Joo-hwan before on the directors previous feature, the entertaining Midnight Runners. Seo-joon himself is no stranger to playing an MMA fighter, having played a similar role in the 2017 drama series Fight My Way, albeit one who wasn’t so angry at God. The issue is his policeman father died when he was still a kid, due to some suspiciously red eyed joyriders he encounters during a routine traffic stop, making the young lad a firm believer that his father’s encouragement to “pray hard” was all a sham.
Said anger has made him grow up to be an undefeated MMA fighter, who in the opening scene is taking part in a match in L.A., overseen by UFC refereeing legend (let’s assume that’s a thing) Herb Dean. File that one under the unexpected cameos in a supernatural Korean movie section. His opponent comes with a large crucifix tattooed on his back, and if anything triggers Seo-joon into an uncontrollable rage, it’s the sight of a crucifix. After obliterating said opponent, on the flight back to Korea he begins to show signs of stigmata through bleeding palms, an inconvenience which eventually leads him to Ahn Sung-ki to seek answers. Playing a Vatican based priest, Seung-ki’s been sent to Seoul on the trail of the Dark Bishop, a powerful Satan worshipper played by Woo Do-hwan (Master), who’s been happily providing victims for demons to possess. Somehow, Seo-joon and Sung-ki must team-up to take Do-hwan down.
I’ll be honest, as a reviewer I know I’m not supposed to assume I know what I’ll think of a movie before I’ve seen it. But I mean, come on, an MMA fighter battling a Satan worshipper!? I was already anticipating the cathartic experience of writing a joyously harsh review. So it came as a surprise when I found myself being rather entertained by The Divine Fury. Let’s get one thing straight, it’s a B-movie. It may be a B-movie wearing a big budget movies clothing, and featuring some of the top talent working in Korea today, but the concept is pure pulp. What makes The Divine Fury work, is that it takes itself ridiculously seriously, to the point where you just kind of smile and go along with it. The first time Seo-joon meets Sung-ki he walks into the middle of an attempted exorcism of a wild-eyed demon, and without a second thought starts busting out the MMA moves in the middle of a church like it’s the most normal thing in the world. It’s hilarious.
As bombastic as proceedings get though, everything is underpinned by the chemistry between Seo-joon and Sung-ki. Now 67, Sung-ki remains one of Korea’s most enduring actors, and can make even complete dreck like Sector 7 at least partially watchable. He’s also one of only two Korean actors that has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (the other being Lee Byung-hun). Compared to Sung-ki’s 100 plus movies, Seo-joon on the other hand is a relative newcomer, however has already established himself as a solid performer on both the big and small screen. This is a guy who clocked in a special appearance in Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite the same year as The Divine Fury after all. Despite an age difference of over 35 years, the pair have a likeable chemistry together, one as the kind-hearted but world weary priest who’s seen it all, and the other as the cynical MMA fighter who wants nothing to do with religion.
The likeable chemistry between the leads is complimented by a brisk pace. Korean filmmakers often have the accusation levelled at them that they’re incapable of making a movie less than 2 hours, and it’s a valid one, with even a pulpy concept such as this clocking in at just over the 2 hour mark. However the time passes remarkably quickly. Ironically, the unlikely ingredient that makes The Divine Fury so enjoyable, is just how familiar it all seems. Crucially, it’s much more of an exorcism movie than it is an MMA flick, and as such Joo-hwan unleashes all of the exorcist movie tropes with giddy abandon. We get scenes of over-enthusiastic projectile vomit, evil flocks of crows, sacrificial hearts, possessed twenty-something girls clambering over the ceiling, and at one point Do-hwan even possesses a dog. There’s nothing really here that we haven’t seen before, but the jump-scares and gross out moments are still effectively executed.
There’s also no doubt Korea’s CGI work has come a long way in the last 20 years, and here the effects are delivered thanks to Dexter, the effects house that Along With the Gods director Kim Yong-hwa founded in 2012. The Divine Fury uses CGI much more sparingly than the Along With the Gods franchise (although you could replace The Divine Fury with literally any movie in that sentence and it’d still be valid), however what’s there is top shelf. Particularly impressive is Seo-joon’s method of exorcising demons. First off he invokes the stigmata (which, yes, means he has bloodied fists before he’s even thrown a punch), and then busts out the WWE wrestling move The Claw on the possessed victims head, making it burst into flames. There’s something undeniably cool about watching these possessed people and their flaming heads, and as I mentioned, it’s all executed completely poker faced.
Events eventually culminate in Seo-joon seeking out Do-hwan in the underground nightclub he’s been operating. But not before he’s given a shirt and dog collar that’s been blessed by the pope himself, explained to be “armour” by a colleague of Sung-ki (played by Choi Wooshik, here clocking in a special appearance to repay Seo-joon’s in Parasite, in which he was one of the main characters). Forget about those iron vests you see in old-school kung fu flicks, it turns out Catholic threads are the real invincible armour! The scene is Do-hwan’s call to action, who’s spent most of the movie so far lurking in a dungeon beneath the nightclub, which appears to house a satanic serpent in a dark pit of water (one which occasionally offers up random gifts that float to the surface).
The finale makes for a ridiculously gratuitous mix of what can best be described as Blade meets John Wick in terms of aesthetics. Seo-joon barges in and takes on all kinds of possessed opponents, setting so many heads on fire that I can genuinely say I enjoyed it more than the cop-out finale of John Wick 3. By the time he battles his way to face Do-hwan, he has an honest to God flaming fist, and after taking a dip in the aforementioned dark pit of water, Do-hwan reappears looking like a hybrid of a K-pop boyband member and the Creature from the Black Lagoon. The fact that his transformation is presented using practical effects and not CGI was a pleasant bonus. The premise promised an MMA fighter versus the forces of evil, and in the finale that’s what we get, complete with the obligatory post-John Wick neon.
In a slightly left of field mid end-credits sequence, Choi Wooshik is seen sitting on a park bench, having received a postcard from Sung-ki sent from Vatican City. It’s a brief scene, but ends with the onscreen text that ‘Father Choi will return in The Green Exorcist’ So it would seem a sequel is in the works which will thrust Wooshik’s limited screen time to starring role status, and hopefully include another martial arts based hook as well. Taekwondo versus Satan, or Hapkido? The opportunities are endless, much like the battle between good and evil.
Similar to the way titles such as Operation Red Sea and Wolf Warrior 2 may be shameless advertisements for the Chinese military, so The Divine Fury can be considered a shameless advertisement for the Catholic church. However also like those movies, it just so happens to be highly entertaining in a leave your brain at the door kind of way, to the point that it makes any of the more cringe worthy moments entirely bearable. I’m not sure if The Green Exorcist will give us more God-powered MMA, but based on The Divine Fury alone, I daresay I’ll happily check it out. Amen.
ShaOW!linDudeonVirtual Recall (2010) ReviewOkay, this movie sounds abysmal, but makes for a witty review. Thanks, Paul.…
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